Assassin, who is a credited writer on the track, expressed his enthusiasm. "It
was amazing to have my culture and music presented on one of the
biggest platforms. Kendrick's performance at the Grammys was powerful
and to be a part of such a monumental moment is just incredible."

This moment arrives at a pivotal time, as the Jamaican vocalist releases his first studio album in almost 10 years this Friday. The Theory of Reggaetivity (out Feb. 19) is a groundbreaking album in the discography of Assassin a.k.a Agent Sasco. For
the past 15 years, Assassin has earned credibility through his dense
catalogue of dancehall hits (spanning over 300 singles) and more
recently for his hip hop collaborations (including Kanye West's "I'm In It" and Kendrick Lamar's "The Blacker the Berry").
On his new third studio album, he goes back to dancehall's foundation
and expands his reach to reggae - delivering his most honest record that
parallels his maturation over the years. In contrast to Assassin's more
dancehall-driven releases - Infiltration(2005) and Gully Sit’n(2007) - The Theory of Reggaetivity's foundation is purely reggae.

“The Theory of Reggaetivity is my musical study of the principles of
reggae music. What makes reggae … reggae? What are the birth marks, the
unique, distinguishing characteristics of the music? I like the idea of
a theory because it's a supposition, therefore it leaves room for
improvements and amendments. Like with all learning it does not propose
that one knows all there is to know on the subject and leaves room for
expansion,” says Assassin.

The album's title, a play on words, makes a nod to Einstein's Theory of
Relativity. Setting the tone of the album, the title track and "Reggae Origin,"
examine the birth of reggae beyond its pioneers. Assassin's description
is more scientific because he questions the possibilities of reggae
playing a role in the Big Bang and the vibration of weather patterns as
the building blocks of the genre, which inherently are building blocks
of life.

Given reggae's reputation of being by the people and for the people, he
carries the tradition of a messenger by reaching people on a human
level, incorporating more live instrumentation and harmonizing than he
has done on any of his previous material. Assassin portrays the genre
as a complex subject that is not just a medium of expression, but also a
soundtrack of motivation ("J-O-B”), struggle (“No Slave” feat. Chronixx), achievement ("Stronger"), love (“Crazy” feat. Elesia Iimura) and celebration ("Feel Highrie").
Assassin, who got his name by annihilating any competition with his
lyrical wordplay, also stays true to his crafty lyricism - evident on
the album’s first single “Mix Up” off of Ranch Entertainment’s Heaven Bless riddim.

From
Los Angeles to New York to Kingston - Assassin recorded the album
across the globe and worked with a variety of producers - Niko
Browne, Diggy British (Protoje), The Drum Keyz, Theo Butler, Sting
International, MLMG, Sound Cheq, Silly Walks, W. Thompson and Chimney Records -
to provide a live music texture of majestic trumpets, and heavy
one-drop bassline rhythms reminiscent of the style pioneered by the
genre's legends like Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Dennis Brown. Assassin
also co-produced “Day In Day Out,” “J-O-B,” "Africa" and "Crazy" under
his Sound Age Entertainment.